The Bureau of Immigration needs 100 additional immigration officers for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and other international airports next month in time for the expected influx and exodus of many travelers during the holiday season.
Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said he expects the Department of Justice to release the appointment papers of the newly-hired personnel before the month ends so they can train immediately and assume their posts this November.
Morente said that like those who were recruited earlier by the BI, most of the applicants to be hired are contractual employees who have served the BI for many years.
He said these employees were always bypassed in the job selection process in previous years despite being qualified and having civil service eligibility.
“It is about time that we recognize the services of these employees by rewarding them with permanent items in our plantilla,” the BI chief said.
With the additional personnel, Morente foresees lesser passenger queues in Naia’s immigration counters during the Asean summit and the holiday season.
According to BI chief personnel officer and concurrent acting spokesman Grifton Medina, an applicant for the position of immigration officer I, should be a professional civil service eligible and a holder of a four-year college degree.
Medina said the BI expects the completion of the appointments of about 600 items for promotion by the end of the month. This will motivate incumbent immigration officers, as they will be promoted to higher positions, he added.
“We have been careful and meticulous in our screening and selection process to make sure that our recruits are competent and qualified to discharge their duties as border control officers of our country,” Medina added.
With the impending passage of a new immigration act, it is imperative that BI officers and employees possess the Qualification Standards that would entitle them to salary upgrades they have been asking from Malacañang and the Congress, he said.